One of the games we mentioned in our latest "Next Week" roundup here at Pure Xbox on Saturday was Screamer, which is an arcade racing title that's launching across multiple platforms (including Xbox Series X and S) on March 26th.
We've been keeping a keen eye on this one for a while, and the reviews bizarrely started going live yesterday on a Sunday of all days! Here's the good news though - the critics seem to be enjoying it on the whole so far.
So, let's take a look at some of the first reviews for Screamer:
Day One (9/10)
"Screamer is bold, exciting, but most importantly, incredibly fun, and it may just be one of the finest arcade racers in years. If you miss the good old days of fantastic arcade racers with personality, do yourself a favour and buy Screamer."
DualShockers (8.5/10)
"Screamer ends up being exactly the kind of surprise that reminds you why you fell in love with racing games in the first place as a kid. It’s bold, a little chaotic, and completely committed to putting gameplay front and center, even when a few rough edges manage to show through. Between the unique twin-stick handling, the risk-reward chaos of the Echo System, and a story that leans hard into its over-the-top anime inspirations, it manages to carve out an identity that feels both fresh and nostalgic."
Push Square (8/10)
"Screamer is a bold and exciting arcade racing game that stands out from the pack. It takes some big swings, and most of them have worked out, save for a story that maybe outstays its welcome. The racing itself is unique and challenging, and once you have a handle on all its systems, it's very rewarding to master. With its stylish presentation on top, this is one racer very much in its own lane."
IGN (8/10)
"Tedious characters and difficulty spikes notwithstanding, Screamer is a unique and confidently assembled racer that feels like the result of locking Blur in a room for 12 months with nothing but a Crunchyroll subscription."
PC Gamer (72/100)
"In a genre where so many games are determined to squabble over who can make the best LIDAR-scanned Monza, we need more Screamers. Milestone’s narrative-led, anime-infused arcade racer has a delightful plethora of fresh ideas, and it lavishes meticulous care into realising them. It’s distinct and idiosyncratic, in all the ways a game should be, all the ways we fear they won’t be when AI gets its tendrils further into the medium. In many ways it’s everything I’d want a racer to be in 2026. Just one problem: I don’t like the driving."
GameReactor (7/10)
"As it stands, it's a slightly odd mix of fast-paced arcade racing, an unbalanced game, a story that takes up too much space, almost too many systems, and controls that demand a lot from the player. Screamer isn't a bad game, but it tries to do almost too much. I would have liked it to be more straightforward. More like Ridge Racer could have been in 2026."
ScreenHub (2.5/5)
"It feels like a game where the final product perhaps isn’t what the developers set out to make, or where restrictions have prevented it from realising its potential. It’s a shame – a story-focused, anime-style racing game with cool drifts and deep interpersonal conflicts between a diverse cast could have really been cool."
As you can see, there are definitely some mixed opinions here, but Screamer is scoring well with the reviewers overall - it has an average rating of 82 for Xbox on Metacritic right now, along with a 77 for PC and a 76 for PS5.
If you're interested in checking it out this week, the game is available to pre-order on the Xbox Store starting at £59.99 / $59.99, and we'll leave you with some more details and screenshots for it below.
Longing, ambition, vengeance. Everyone has a reason to enter the Screamer tournament, and no one’s backing down. Join the competition and race side by side with fearless drivers, ready to push past every limit to chase what they believe in.